being present
Over the course of the last 8 months I have written 185 blog posts, each time embracing something different.
You might think that 8 months and 185 blog posts in to this journey I wouldn't be able to go an hour, let alone a day, without consciously thinking about whether or not I was embracing something and what exactly that something was.
But lately I've noticed the opposite is actually true. And I think that is a really good thing.
When I first started this journey I was always thinking about what I needed to embrace, and whether embracing that "thing" came naturally to me or if it was something I tended to avoid. I would think about what I embraced yesterday and wonder what I was going to embrace tomorrow. I would focus on the "lesson" I was supposed to learn from every encounter and couldn't wait to sit down at my computer to share it with you. It was exciting to see myself become more open, to take new risks, and to journey deeper with self, family, nature, and God.
And yet lately, the end of the day will come, or even the next morning, and I'll realize I didn't think about what I was embracing even once during the day. Not because the journey is no longer important. But because embracing everything in my path has become natural. So natural that this openness -- to new experiences, friendships, family, God, and self -- doesn't feel hard or scary or unusual any more. It simply feels like the person I've become.
And because I don't have to focus so much on what I am or should be embracing, I can actually be present. Enjoy each moment. Listen with my heart. Laugh from my belly. Love with my arms open. Worship. Pray. Smile. Turn my face toward the sun or the rain. Visit friends. Return phone calls. Read good books. Swim. Bike. Run. Hike. Cry. Write.
Whatever the moment asks of me, I can be.
I think being present is one of the hardest challenges we face. To let go of what needs to be done in the future, and let go of what we should have done differently in the past, is so much harder than it sounds. So for the moments I can actually, fully EMBRACE BEING PRESENT I am grateful.
You might think that 8 months and 185 blog posts in to this journey I wouldn't be able to go an hour, let alone a day, without consciously thinking about whether or not I was embracing something and what exactly that something was.
But lately I've noticed the opposite is actually true. And I think that is a really good thing.
When I first started this journey I was always thinking about what I needed to embrace, and whether embracing that "thing" came naturally to me or if it was something I tended to avoid. I would think about what I embraced yesterday and wonder what I was going to embrace tomorrow. I would focus on the "lesson" I was supposed to learn from every encounter and couldn't wait to sit down at my computer to share it with you. It was exciting to see myself become more open, to take new risks, and to journey deeper with self, family, nature, and God.
And yet lately, the end of the day will come, or even the next morning, and I'll realize I didn't think about what I was embracing even once during the day. Not because the journey is no longer important. But because embracing everything in my path has become natural. So natural that this openness -- to new experiences, friendships, family, God, and self -- doesn't feel hard or scary or unusual any more. It simply feels like the person I've become.And because I don't have to focus so much on what I am or should be embracing, I can actually be present. Enjoy each moment. Listen with my heart. Laugh from my belly. Love with my arms open. Worship. Pray. Smile. Turn my face toward the sun or the rain. Visit friends. Return phone calls. Read good books. Swim. Bike. Run. Hike. Cry. Write.
Whatever the moment asks of me, I can be.
I think being present is one of the hardest challenges we face. To let go of what needs to be done in the future, and let go of what we should have done differently in the past, is so much harder than it sounds. So for the moments I can actually, fully EMBRACE BEING PRESENT I am grateful.
I often think of Douglas Steere's pamphlet, On Being Present Where You Are. It's a lovely piece, but the title says it succinctly. Being present to the moment, being present to people. In this era of perpetual distraction, embracing being present is a good word.
ReplyDeleteThank you Howard! You are absolutely right about this being the "era of perpetual distraction". Not to mention how we are praised when we multitask! It is quite an accomplishment to be present these days!!
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